Hazardous Waste Generator Regulations Compendium Volume 6: Generator Treatment in Tanks and Containers March 2021 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery Materials Recovery and Waste Management Division United States Environmental Protection Lai mm Agency 1 ------- Main Index Volume 6: Generator Treatment in Tanks and Containers Introduction Resource View Resources by Document Category Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) View Index CFR View FR Preamble 15 16 14 6 3 5 This document includes the following sections: • Resource View - outlines the document types by which resources are organized. • Resources by Document Category - lists resources for each document category outlined in the Resource View. • CFR View - provides relevant Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) language reformatted for easy reading. These three main sections are cross-referenced, i.e., each section includes hyperlinks to the other sections. In addition, each section and its accompanying index include a hyperlink to the Main Index that allows the user to easily navigate from one section to another. 2 ------- Introduction Return to: Main Index About the Compendium The Hazardous Waste Generator Regulations Compendium serves as a user-friendly reference to assist regulators, industrial facilities generating and managing solid and hazardous wastes, and the general public in locating resources relevant to specific regulatory topics within the federal hazardous waste generator program. The objective of this document is to consolidate and streamline the various resources on a topic into a user-friendly format, including references to relevant CFR language, Federal Register (FR) notices, documents posted on RCRA Online (i.e., guidance in the form of memoranda issued by EPA, Q&As, and other publications), and other resources, such as Frequent Questions webpages. The Compendium has been divided into multiple volumes that are available here: www.epa.gov/hwgenerators/hazardous-waste-generator-regulations-compendium. This document does not change any of the existing solid or hazardous waste requirements, nor does it offer an exhaustive list of relevant resources, as new resources may come into being or older ones may be relevant to a specific issue, but not included. Certain available resources, such as superseded RCRA Online documents, have not been referenced. Rather than including or reproducing referenced resources, this document generally provides hyperlinks to individual resources. As an exception, the Compendium does include relevant sections of the most current CFR regulatory language (as of the date on the cover of the Compendium). The included CFR language has been reformatted to make it easier to read, but it is not a substitute for the official CFR itself, or for the requirements in the CFR. The Government Printing Office frequently updates the e-CFR website; where appropriate, hyperlinks to the respective CFR section at the e- CFR website are provided. Most states are authorized to administer their own RCRA Subtitle C hazardous waste program. Therefore, states may have their own set of regulations that apply in lieu of federal regulations. State regulations must be at least as stringent as the federal standards, but they can be more stringent. Please visit the following website to determine if the state regulatory program is different from the federal program: https://www.epa.gov/hwgenerators/links-hazardous-waste- programs-and-us-state-environmental-agencies, and check with your state agency. About the Generator Treatment Volume This volume of the Compendium lists resources and CFR language pertaining to generator treatment that are found at 40 CFR 268 Subpart A and in the preamble to the March 24th, 1986 Federal Register Notice. For more information regarding other topics that apply to facilities generating hazardous waste, refer to other volumes of the Compendium and EPA's Hazardous Waste Generators Webpage. Please note that the Hazardous Waste Generator Improvements rule of 2016 created new sections in Part 262, which contains the regulations pertaining to generators. Accordingly, some citations in the generator requirements in older resources in this Compendium are outdated, including references to § 261.5, § 262.34, and others. Please see the preamble to the final Hazardous Waste Generator Improvements rule for a discussion of the reorganization of the regulations (81 FR 3 ------- 85735-85740, November 28, 2016). For a specific crosswalk of the regulation citation changes, refer to www.epa.gov/hwgenerators/hazardous-waste-generator-regulations-crosswalk. For more information on these regulations and any other questions or comments concerning this document, please contact EPA's Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery: Kathy Lett 1 ett. kathy @epa. gov Mary Beth Sheridan sheridan.marybeth@epa.gov U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. (MC: 5304P) Washington, DC 20460 4 ------- Resource View Return to: Main Index Generator Treatment in Tanks and Containers Resource Index: • Resource Type: o EPA Memoranda o Questions and Answers (O&A) o Federal Register Notices 5 ------- Resources by Document Category Return to: Main Index iHH Memoranda 12335 Treatment as Defined in 40 CFR 260.10 Subpart B 11/26/1984 Purpose of Treatment; Facilitating Disposal; Plastic Bags; Cyanide 12617 Accumulation and Treatment of Wastes On-Site/ Permit Requirements 04/16/1986 Solidification; Fixation; Containerized Hazardous Liquids; Generator Standards 11163 Permitting of Treatment Activities Occurring in a Generator's Accumulation Tanks or Containers 06/17/1986 Tanks and Containers; Incineration; Land Treatment; Withdrawal of Permit Applications 12694 Permitting of Treatment Activities in a Generator's Accumulation Tanks or Containers 07/25/1986 Accumulation Tanks and Containers; Incineration; Land Treatment; Withdrawal of Permit Applications 12811 Treatment in Accumulation Tanks and Containers Allowed for All Generators Subject to 262.34 12/05/1986 Accumulation Tanks and Containers; Treatment; Small Quantity Generators (SQGs); Large Quantity Generators (LQGs) Refers to an enclosed memo that is not identified or included. 11207 Treatment of Hazardous Waste in a Generator's Accumulation Tanks and Containers 12/22/1986 Accumulation Tanks and Containers; Treatment 6 ------- 11209 Generator Treatment in Accumulation Tanks and Containers 12/22/1986 Accumulation Tanks and Containers; Treatment 11231 Treatment of Hazardous Waste in Generator's Accumulation Tanks 03/25/1987 Treatment; Tanks; 90-Day Storage 12923 Evaporator Used to Remove Water from Hazardous Waste 05/01/1987 Evaporators; Generator Exclusion; Totally Enclosed Treatment Exclusion; Volume Reduction; Thermal Treatment; Tanks; Air Emissions 11310 Requested Re- interpretation of [the] On-Site Treatment Exemption 12/15/1987 Tanks and Containers; Thermal Treatment; Treatment Benefits; Detonation; Open Burning 11422 Generator Treatment of F006 Electroplating Sludge 04/19/1989 F006 Sludge; Stabilizing Compounds; Thermal Drying; Tanks and Containers 13297 Mixed Waste Regulation - RCRA Requirements vs. NRC Requirements 06/26/1989 Mixed Waste; Short- lived Radionuclides 11598 Generator Treatment in Accumulation Tanks and Containers 04/16/1991 Treatment; Permits and Permitting; Tanks and Containers; Radioactive; Very Small Quantity Generators (VSQGs) 7 ------- 11609 Compacting Hazardous Waste in Steel Drums as Treatment 05/21/1991 Compacting; Treatment in Containers; Volume Reduction 11624 Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure and Lead Paint Removal Debris 07/03/1991 On-Site Stabilization; Tanks and Containers; Lead Paint Removal Debris 11641 Treatment of Hazardous Waste from Large Quantity Generators 09/20/1991 Tanks and Containers; LQGs; SQGs; Waste Analysis Plan (WAP); Dilution Prohibition 13526 Exemption from Permitting Requirements for Waste Water Treatment Units 01/16/1992 Air Stripper; Tanks 11675 Remediation of Contaminated Soils at Historic Manufactured Gas Plant (MGP) Sites 07/01/1992 Contaminated Soils; Remediation Waste; Burning Treated Waste 13558 RCRA Regulatory Interpretation on Benzene Strippers at WRC Refinery 08/27/1992 Benzene Stripping; Waste Minimization; Generator Exemption 13570 Regulatory Requirements Pertaining to Management of Waste Solvents and Used Oil 10/28/1992 Mixing Hazardous Waste and Used Oil; Generator Exemption; Hazardous Waste Determination; Dilution See questions 14-17. 8 ------- 11739 Strategy for Voluntary Remediation of Historic Manufactured Gas Plant (MGP) Sites 04/26/1993 Contaminated Soils; Remediation Waste; Burning Treated Waste 13613 Use of On-Site Precipitation Process as an Acceptable Pretreatment Step Adjunct to Mercury Retorting 06/03/1993 Precipitation; Pretreatment; Mercury Wastes (D009); Retorting; Tanks and Containers; WAP 11763 Regulatory Status of Plastic Chips from Reclamation of Lead- Acid Batteries 08/04/1993 Lead Acid Batteries; Battery Acid; Corrosive (D002); Toxicity (D008); Neutralization 11881 Regulation of Fuel Blending and Related Treatment and Storage Activities 10/17/1994 Fuel Blending; Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR); Thermal Treatment; Air Emissions; Subparts AA and BB 14024 Status of Mixed Coal Products 05/30/1996 Manufactured Gas Plant (MGP)Wastes; Mixing Hazardous Waste with Coal, Wood Chips or Com Cobs; LDR 14104 Application of RCRA Regulations to Chemical Flocculation Units When Used to Treat Wash Water from Aircraft Engines 09/23/1996 Chemical Flocculation; Cadmium- contaminated Wash Water; Generator Exemption; Treatment Sludge 9 ------- 14112 Permitting and Land Disposal Requirements for Management of Contaminated Soil Which is Hazardous or Contains Hazardous Waste 11/27/1996 Contaminated Soil; Cleanup; Generator Exemption; Permit Waiver; LDR Corrective Action Management Units 14462 Treatment Process for Spent Abrasive Wastes 08/15/1997 Blasting Processes; Metal Coatings; Vacuum System; Stabilizing Metals; Portland Cement; Silicate Materials; Tanks and Containers; Miscellaneous Unit (Subpart X); LDR; Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) Liability 14291 Management of Remediation Waste Under RCRA 10/14/1998 Treatability Studies Exemption; Remediation Waste; Generator Exemption; Permit Waivers See pages 6-8 14466 Permitting of Catalyzed Electrochemical Oxidation Process 10/23/1998 Electrochemical Oxidation; Organic Wastes; Non-thermal Treatment; Generator Exemption 10 ------- I 14338 Decharacterization of DO 18 Coal Tar Wastes at Manufactured Gas Plants 01/26/1999 MGP; Toxicity (DO 18); Mixing; LDR; Dilution; Pre- treatment to Enhance Treatment 14471 Generator Treatment of Soil in a Container 07/18/2000 Contaminated Soil; Cement 14618 Hazardous Waste Generated in Laboratories 08/16/2002 Academic Laboratories; LQGs; SQGs; Precipitation; Oxidation/Reduction; Incineration; Boilers and Industrial Furnaces (BIFs); LDR; WAP; Elementary Neutralization; On- site Recycling This memo is a thorough summary of the generator treatment guidance and regulations with broad applicability beyond laboratories. 14839 Applicable RCRA Regulations for Recycling Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) Glass 04/01/2014 CRT Glass; Generator Exemption; Non- thermal Treatment; Legitimate Recycling A third-party recycler of CRT glass would be a generator for hazardous residuals of the recycling process, which is why this memo refers to generator treatment. 14890 Treatment of Hazardous Waste Air Filters by Compacting 03/02/2016 Air Flow Filters; Compacting and Baling; Totally Enclosed Canister; Volume Reduction; SQGs; LQGs; Thermal Treatment 11 ------- I 14893 Recalled Takata Airbag Inflators 06/23/2017 Airbag Inflators; Deployment; Recycling; Scrap Metal Q&A 13117 "Lab Packs" at Generator Sites 01/1/1988 Lab Packs; Absorbents; Service Company; Repackaging; Thermal Treatment; Incineration 13346 Treatment—Two Parts to Definition 01/1/1990 Consolidating; Mixing Waste; Changing Character of Waste; Making Waste Safer to Transport; Storage Time Limits 13553 Treatment in a Generator's 90-Day Containment Building 08/01/1992 Thermal Treatment; Containment Buildings; WAP; Incinerators; BIFs 14662 Frequently Asked Questions on Generator Treatment 01/01/2003 Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQGs)1; SQGs; LQGs; Thermal Treatment; Containment Buildings; Drip Pads; Generators Superseded by 2016 Generator Rule with regard to drip pads and containment buildings at SQGs (81 FR 85768). 14684 Small Quantity Generator Treatment in Tanks 08/01/2003 Special Tank Standards for SQGs; Thermal Treatment ^ As of November 28, 2016, Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQGs) are now called Very Small Quantity Generators (VSQGs). 12 ------- I Federal Register Notices 51 FR 10146 Hazardous Waste Management System: General; Identification and Listing of Hazardous Waste; Standards for Generators of Hazardous Waste; Standards for Transporters of Hazardous Waste; EPA Administered Permit Programs; Authorization of State Hazardous Waste Programs 03/24/1986 Hazardous Waste; Generators; Treatment; Accumulation; Identification and Listing Preamble discussion only; there is no corresponding regulatory language. See page 10168 of preamble. 55 FR 22520 Land Disposal 06/01/1990 WAP; Best See page 22670 Restrictions for Third Demonstrated of preamble. Third Scheduled Available Wastes Technology (BDAT); Treatment Standards 13 ------- CFR View Index Return to: Main Index Tillo lop ¦¦¦¦¦¦¦¦¦ 268.7(^1(5") Requirements for Generators and Reverse Distributors 14 ------- CFR View Return to: Main Index NOTE: The CFR language may have been excerpted, reformatted and appended with subheadings and explanations/terms in brackets. § 268.7(a)(5) Requirements for Generators and Reverse Distributors View Resources | Go to e-CFR | Return to: CFR Index | Resource View | Main Index (5) If a generator is managing and treating prohibited waste or contaminated soil in tanks; containers; or containment buildings regulated under 40 CFR 262.15; 262.16; and 262.17 to meet applicable Land Disposal Restriction (LDR) treatment standards found at § 268.40; the generator must develop and follow a written waste analysis plan which describes the procedures they will carry out to comply with the treatment standards. (Generators treating hazardous debris under the alternative treatment standards of Table 1 to § 268.45; however; are not subject to these waste analysis requirements.) The plan must be kept on site in the generator's records; and the following requirements must be met: [§ 268.40 (a) - A prohibited waste identified in the table "Treatment Standards for Hazardous Wastes" may be land disposed only if it meets the following treatment standard requirements: (1) "total waste standards" - all hazardous constituents in the waste or in the treatment residue must be at or below the values for that waste found in § 268.40; (2) "waste extract standards" - the hazardous constituents in the extract of the waste or in the extract of the treatment residue must be at or below the values outlined in § 268.40; (3) "technology standard" - wastes must be treated using the technology specified in § 268.42.] (i) The waste analysis plan must be based on a detailed chemical and physical analysis of a representative sample of the prohibited waste(s) being treated and [must] contain all information necessary to treat the waste(s) in accordance with the requirements of this part; including the selected testing frequency. (ii) Such plan must be kept in the facility's on-site files and made available to inspectors. (iii) Wastes shipped off-site pursuant to this paragraph must comply with the notification requirements of § 268.7(a)(3). [§ 268.7(a)(3)(i) - With the initial shipment of waste to each treatment; storage; or disposal facility; the generator must send a one-time written notice to each treatment; storage; or disposal facility receiving the waste; and place a copy in the file.] 15 ------- Federal Register Preamble Return to: Main Index NOTE: The FR preamble language has been reformatted. Federal Register: 51 FR 10146 (March 24,1986); see page 10168 View Resources | Go to FR Notice | Return to: CFR Index | Resource View | Main Index (III)(E)(1) - Under today's final rules, 100-1000 kg/mo generators will be required to obtain a permit if they treat or dispose of hazardous waste on-site (except for treatment in tanks or containers during the 180/270 day accumulation period in conformance with Subparts J or I of Part 265, respectively) or accumulate hazardous waste on-site in tanks or containers for more than 180 (or 270) days. [•••] The Agency disagrees that on-site treatment should be encouraged by exempting those generators of 100-1000 kg/mo from the RCRA permitting requirements. To the extent that these generators are conducting the same treatment/storage or treatment/disposal as other permitted facilities, their on-site treatment activities pose a potential risk to human health and the environment. Therefore, reduced or eliminated permitting requirements would be inappropriate. Of course, no permitting would be required if a generator chooses to treat their hazardous waste in the generator's accumulation tanks or containers in conformance with the requirements of § 262.34 and Subparts J or I of Part 265. Nothing in § 262.34 precludes a generator from treating waste when it is in an accumulation tank or container covered by that provision. Under the existing Subtitle C system, EPA has established standards for tanks and containers which apply to both the storage and treatment of hazardous waste. These requirements are designed to ensure that the integrity of the tank or container is not breached. Thus, the same standards apply to a tank or a container, regardless of whether treatment or storage is occurring. Since the same standards apply to treatment in tanks as applies to storage in tanks and since EPA allows for limited on-site storage without the need for a permit or interim status (90 days for over 1000 kg/mo generators and 180/270 days for 100-1000 kg/mo generators), the Agency believes that treatment in accumulation tanks or containers is permissible under the existing rules, provided the tanks or containers are operated strictly in compliance with all applicable standards. 16 ------- |